Bracknell

Bracknell is a town of about 50,000 people (1991) in Bracknell Forest borough, in the English county of Berkshire. It lies about 6 miles (10 kilometres) to the east of Reading. It is about 9 miles south west of Windsor, with Windsor Great Park inbetween. It is between the M3 and M4 motorways, and the town has two train stations (Bracknell and Martins Heron) on the Reading to London Waterloo line, operated by South West Trains. The town has four secondary schools, The Garth Hill Technology College, Ranelagh School (a Church of England school), Easthampstead Park and Brakenhale.

Related Topics:
Town - Bracknell Forest - English - County - Berkshire - Mile - Kilometre - Reading - Windsor - Windsor Great Park - M3 - M4 - Martins Heron - London Waterloo - South West Trains - The Garth Hill Technology College - Ranelagh School - Church of England - Easthampstead Park - Brakenhale

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Bracknell is a former new town developed after the Second World War from a small market town. Very little of the original town was left. The location was chosen over White Waltham, an alternative possibility, because the Bracknell site avoided encroaching on good quality agricultural land. The town expanded beyond the intended size into farmland to the south. The town centre is a 1960s design, and in need of major regeneration. The Borough Council is working in partnership with the Bracknell Regeneration Partnership (Legal and General and Schroders) to regenerate the town centre.

Related Topics:
New town - Second World War - Market town - White Waltham - 1960s - Legal and General - Schroders

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The town was successful in attracting high-tech industries, and became home to companies such as Fujitsu (formerly ICL), Hewlett-Packard, Siemens, Honeywell, and Novell. Its success subsequently spread into the surrounding Thames Valley or M4 corridor, attracting IT firms such as DEC (subsequently Compaq), Microsoft, Oracle, and Sun Microsystems.

Related Topics:
Fujitsu - ICL - Hewlett-Packard - Siemens - Honeywell - Novell - Thames Valley - M4 corridor - IT - DEC - Compaq - Microsoft - Oracle - Sun Microsystems

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The most visible landmark in the town centre is Winchester House, formerly owned by 3M and informally known as the 3M building as it had the 3M logo in illuminated red letters in a prominent place at the top of the building. It is a twelve storey building which used to house the company's UK headquarters before being abandoned in 2004, and it can be seen from over a mile away. The town was also the home of the Met Office until 2003.

Related Topics:
3M - 2004 - Met Office - 2003

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The structure of the town is intended to be a series of communities around the town centre where shops and services are located in a pedestrianised area within a ring road. The estates are known as Great Hollands, Bullbrook, Whitegrove (formerly Warfield Green, built in the late 1990s), Priestwood, Popeswood, Easthampstead, Wildridings, Harmanswater, Crown Wood, Birch Hill, Martin's Heron, Forest Park and Hanworth. Major expansion is again proposed to the west of the town (Peacock Farm) and a new neighbourhood on former Ministry of Defence land near the town centre (the Staff College site).

Related Topics:
Ring road - Estates - Great Hollands - Bullbrook - Whitegrove - 1990s - Priestwood - Popeswood - Easthampstead - Wildridings - Harmanswater - Crown Wood - Birch Hill - Martin's Heron - Forest Park - Hanworth - Staff College

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A feature of a number of the estates that causes great confusion for outsiders and newcomers alike is the fact that streets only have names, not titles - in Birch Hill, Crown Wood, Great Hollands and others there is no "Road", "Avenue", "Street", just "Frobisher", "Jameston", "Juniper", "Jevington". The residential streets are named in alphabetical order starting in Great Hollands, with A's, through D's, such as Donnybrook, in Hanworth, J's, such as "Jameston" and "Jevington" in Birch Hill, and beyond.

Related Topics:
Road - Avenue - Street - Frobisher - Jameston - Juniper - Jevington - Great Hollands - Donnybrook - Hanworth - Birch Hill

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Bracknell has a station on the electric railway line from London's Waterloo station to Reading, originally built by the London and South Western Railway and now operated by South West Trains. As a consequence of the frequent service on this line, Bracknell is now a major commuter centre with its residents in both direction (westwards to Reading and eastwards to London).

Related Topics:
London's - Waterloo station - London and South Western Railway - South West Trains

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In 2004, research into smoking habits in Britain by the consultancy firm CACI found that, on average, Bracknell's inhabitants spent less money on cigarettes each year than people from any other area of the country.

Related Topics:
2004 - Cigarette

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